Hollyburn Sew-Along - Finish the Waistband and Extras

Welcome to the next post in the Hollyburn Skirt Sew-along! Incase you've missed any, here are all the posts so far:
- Inspiration (Part 1)
- Inspiration (Part 2)
- Choosing a view
- Sizing
- Choosing and Buying Fabric
- Changing the Length
- An Interview with Tasia
- Pattern Alteration - Removing the Pockets
- Pattern Alteration - Piping on your waistband
- Prewash and Prepare Fabric
- Thoughts on Grading Up in Size
- Choices to make before starting to sew
- Cutting Layout and Cutting
- Sewing the Pockets
- Skirt Seams
- Zipper (Unlined Skirt)

- Zipper (Lined Skirt)

Today we're going to finish off the inside of the waistband, and if you're doing them, the button tabs or belt loops. 

Finishing off the Waistband
To finish off the inside of the waistband we need to attach the inside edge of the waistband to the waistband seam. You can do this either by hand or by machine.

I'll be demonstrating how to do it by machine, if you want to do it by hand, there's a great tutorial here by Tasia on how to slip stitch it by hand.

First you need to pin the waistband along the waistband seam, lining up the bottom edge of the waistband on the inside of the skirt just below the seamline on the outside. If you have lined your skirt, you can do exactly the same thing.

It'll look something like this when it's pinned:

Now you want to sew a line of stitching in the ditch between the waistband and the skirt to secure the inside of the waistband to the rest of the skirt. I used my topstitching foot for this:

When you're done, this is what it should look like from the outside, can you see the line of stitching just below the waistband:

And it should look something like this from the inside, with a line of stitching along the bottom of the inside of the waistband:

Does that all make sense? If not, why don't you take a look at the last section about ditch-stitching in this post, Tasia has explained it really well. Feel free to ask any questions if you still have any though.

Please Note: In the following photos I am using pink thread on black fabric- this is because I was just taking the photos for this tutorial not to put the tabs or loops on my actual skirt, so chose fabric to contrast so you could see the stitching easier. You should use thread that matches your fabric!

Button Tabs
As we discussed earlier in the sew-along, one of the two additional options in the pattern are button tabs. If you're doing the button tabs, you should already have cut out two of the tab pattern pieces (piece 9) and interfaced them.


Fold the tabs in half, RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER, matching the notches and corners:


And sew around the edges of the piece with a 1.5cm (5/8") seam allowance:


Now trim the seam allowances, including trimming down the corners to remove the bulk from there:


And turn it the right way around:


And press:


Now finish the raw edge. This isn't essential, but if your fabric is prone to unravelling is a good idea so you don't get unravelled threads popping out:


Now pin it onto your waistband. You'll be lining it up with where you want the straight edge to go (probably above your side seams) but FACING THE WRONG WAY (ie towards the back):


Please excuse my fake (and wonky) waistband I made to demonstrate sewing the belt loops and button tabs. Obviously, you'll be sewing it onto your actual skirt.

Sew a line of stitching parallel to the raw edge of the tab, close to the edge (my line was about 1/4" away from the edge) to secure the tab to the waistband:


Now fold back the button tab along the line of stitching you just made, so it's facing the correct way. Sew a line of top stitching along the edge to hold the button tab facing the correct way:


And the last step is to sew a button on. Sew the button on through all the layers of the tab and the waistband:


And done! Huzzah!

Belt Loops
The other additional option in the pattern are belt loops. For making the belt loops you'll need to have cut out one of piece 8:


First finish one of the long edges of the button loop piece, I used a zig-zag:


Now you need to fold the belt loop piece into thirds, with the edge you just finished on the outside:


And pin it like that all the way along the length:


Now you need to sew two lines of topstitching along either edge of the folded belt loop piece, making sure that you catch the finished edge. The outside of the belt loops should look something like this:


And the underside like this (do you see how I've made sure to catch the raw edge in the topstitching):


Next, cut your belt loops into 4 equal pieces:


Now you need to pin the belt loops where you want on the waistband. I would probably place mine over the point where the pocket meets the waistband at the front, and a matching spot on the back. Fold under the raw edges like this:


Now sew a line of stitching near the edge of the top and bottom of the waistband. To make it nice and secure, I stitched back across the line of stitching to make two layers of stitching:


And when you've done all four, you're done!

Are you excited? We're almost done! Just hemming to go and we're finished! I know I'm excited! How is everyone done? Will you be ready to share your skirts with us before the 11th of Feb?

Missed any of the sew-along posts, or just want to re-read them? You can find the full list here.